Frostpunk and Against the Storm are some of the greatest city-builders around, which isn't an easy achievement when there are so many games in the genre. Both of these games put survival front and center in their gameplay, making each title a grueling, but fascinating, take on building a society and pushing for them to thrive. Strategy-focused city-builders open the door for plenty of unique concepts, and this upcoming Steam game could be a great addition to the genre. Feastopia is an indie game that's gearing up to launch at the end of the month, and it might have what it takes to be the next must-play strategy game on Steam.
Feastopia's Steam page brands it as a "roguelike simulation game," which may immediately pique the interest of fans looking for more games like Against the Storm. Although a city-builder on the surface, Against the Storm's roguelike gameplay puts a fresh twist on the genre, and Feastopia is taking that formula to heart. Frostpunk and Against the Storm both take place in dark and harrowing scenarios, but Feastopia takes their gameplay styles and uses them to bring a more whimsical world to life.
A Look Inside Feastopia's Confirmed Features
- City-building
- Roguelike gameplay
- Focus on strategy
- Generated maps to build from
- Plot focused around food
- Natural and human-made disasters
- A hungry baby god that needs to be kept happy
- Resource management
In Feastopia, Players Sign a Contract With a Newly-Hatched Baby God Who's Ready to Eat
Feastopia's premise is wonderfully weird. After a strange creature hatches from a mysterious egg, players become the being's contracted caretaker. This little creature is adorable, but it also happens to be a god; a god that really likes to eat. With a hefty appetite and ability to grant rewards that improve the lives of citizens, Feastopia requires players to take on a delicate balancing act. Some of the best city-builder games often have more grounded approaches, but Feastopia uses the genre as a way to bring a uniquely charming world to life.
Feastopia is scheduled to launch on Steam January 29.
Food is the Most Important Resource
Instead of resources that help build the city, Feastopia puts food front and center as a way to appease the game's ravenous baby god. Of course, food is often an important resource for city-builders. Survival-focused games like Frostpunk and Against the Storm take managing food very seriously. However, making it such an important resource for the sake of a rapidly growing god creature definitely isn't a common way to utilize food in the genre. It's a really fun twist that really drives home just how goofy the concept is.
Helping the Baby God is the Key to Survival
Not keeping the baby god fed and full at all times will have dire consequences. "Make sure the growing god’s stomach is full — or else!" So, making sure the god's stomach happy is of the upmost importance. The game's trailer already makes it clear that disasters like fires and citizen deaths can happen and knock progress off course. In Frostpunk and Against the Storm, surviving the outside forces of nature and the harshness of a dwindling world set the central challenge in motion. With Feastopia, the main threat is also what ensures civilization's survival. Frostpunk's setting and Against the Storm's devastating Blightstorms are understandable threats. Feastopia flips that on its head by making its central god creature adorable. It's deceptively cute, which is an interesting way to incentivize players to keep a civilization thriving.
Create a wide variety of incredible, yummy dishes to please the baby god’s palate and win wonderful blessings and gifts for the city.
Even though the god is the main way to secure safety, there are also natural disasters that will come along to challenge the strength of a player's town.
Feastopia Makes Sure Every Aspect of the City Revolves Around Food Production
The town is built on the command that everyone needs to work to feed the god. Farms, bakeries, pizza parlors, orchards, butchers, and even juice makers play a role in leveling up the city. Keeping track of what foods the god likes the most is integral, so discovering recipes and keeping things fresh and exciting also need to be considered. Just feeding the god the same thing all the time isn't going to cut it. Feastopia's art style and general premise may lead some to believe that it's a cozy city-builder game. However, since it's inspired by Against the Storm, there is definitely a considerable level of challenge.
The bigger the god grows, the higher the difficulty becomes. Keeping a town alive in a city-builder is usually not an easy task, especially when aspects of the roguelike genre are thrown into the mix. Whether it's lamb chops or salads, Feastopia's god is ready to devour as much as possible until the town's citizens can't keep up with the demand any longer.
Feastopia's Culinary-Focused Strategy Mechanics Make it a City-Builder Worth Keeping an Eye On
There are a lot of wonderful city-builders on Steam, but Feastopia has managed to find a unique niche in a genre that's really difficult to rework in a fresh light. City-builders all have the same general goal; survival. What makes survival such a challenge, though, is the actual key to making it a city-builder worth spending time with. Otherwise, it can just feel like a repeat of a game that already exists. Not only does Feastopia boast plenty of uniqueness, but its randomly generated maps also help make every playthrough different. So, that only helps its replayability value in the long run, too.
The game is right around the corner, but city-builder fans who are extra curious can play a Feastopia demo on Steam right now. Its wacky concept may not resonate with every city-builder lover, but it definitely has the potential to find a strong following. Cute indie games on Steam are easy to find, and Feastopia doesn't shy away from cuteness. However, this adorable baby god also holds the fate of a city in its chubby little hands.